HOLLIS — Autopsies were scheduled today in an apparent murder-suicide, in which Maine State Police say Hollis resident Michael Lagarde shot his wife, Freda, and then turned the gun on himself.
The couple’s bodies were found near a back bedroom in their blue mobile home on Brook Drive at Tanglewood Mobile Estates off Route 177 Wednesday.
According to Maine Public Safety spokesman Steve McCausland, the adult daughter of Freda Lagarde made the grim discovery when she went to the home at about 1 p.m. after being unable to reach her mother on the telephone. The woman called 911 and York County Sheriff’s deputies responded. The sheriff’s office turned the investigation over to Maine State Police, who investigate most Maine homicides.
The apparent murder-suicide shocked neighbors, including Jackie Worthington, whose mobile home was close to the Lagarde property. Worthington is a friend of Freda Lagarde’s daughter.
“They never had any major issues,” said Worthington Wednesday afternoon, as Maine State police worked inside the Lagarde home nearby. “I used to work with Freda. I talked to her just two days ago. They’re nice people, they used to let my kids play in their yard. I went to his 50th birthday party last year.”
Worthington, who has lived in the mobile home park for five years, said the Lagardes moved in about two years ago. The Lagarde property is the last on Brook Drive, which is a dead-end at their driveway.
Maine State Police said Michael Lagarde worked at Garland Manufacturing in Saco, while Freda Lagarde worked at a company called Loxics in Biddeford.
Investigators say the shooting may have taken place late Tuesday night. Worthington said she heard shots at about 10:30 a.m. Wednesday morning, but there is a shooting range nearby and another neighbor has a motorcycle that backfires. It is unclear whether the noise Worthington heard is connected to the Lagarde deaths. She said she didn’t hear anything Tuesday night.
The investigation is continuing. Detectives continued to collect evidence Wednesday evening and conduct interviews.
— Staff Writer Tammy Wells can be contacted at 324-4444 or twells@journaltribune.com.
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